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| MISSION STATEMENT AND WHAT O.P.E.R.A. IS AND IS NOT |
| The purpose of the Opposition Parties Election Reform Alliance (OPERA USA)shall be to oppose the legal goobligook often guised as election reform and offer solutions for real election reform; to promote equality for each existing political party organization and independent candidates; seek simplification, consistency, and practicality for election laws and related state and federal regulations; facilitate mutual political organization needs; work as a united effort for election reform on principles/issues found to be of common concern.
OPERA may have affiliates or members, who participate in discussions and activities, but who do not vote on decisions such as concensus. THE TYPE OF ACCEPTABLE VOTE SHOULD BE ANNOUNCED IN EACH MOTION, PROPOSAL. Procedural matters should always require a concensus or representatives concensus vote. Votes may be taken via e mail or on line surveys in addition to "formal meetings". OPERA may have various terms for public promotion of agreements:
MAJORITY APPROVAL---At least 51 per cent of the political parties participating in the coalition in agreement on an election reform issue, with permission for a dissenting opinion if desired. MUTUAL AGREEMENT---Two or more political parties in agreement on an election reform issue and may issue their own statement without stating it was a coalition decision, although they may state they are part of the coalition.
The chairperson of OPERA is rotational by the order the parties were on the ballot at the last general election. The alliance shall meet at least every three months via MSN instant messenger, teleconference, in person, or other electronic means. Co chairs shall serve for periods of three month intervals, selected by the order the parties were on the ballot and moving forward from both ends. The co chairs shall serve for a meeting and until the next meeting, including organizing the next meeting although the new co chairs should provide the agenda. (For example, a Democrat Party rep. would co chair with a rep. from the Green Party, Libertarian would co chair with Natural Law, Constitution with Reform if all eligible parties were participating in the alliance.) The leadership of OPERA shall elect a vice chair, secretary, treasury, deputy treasurer, public relations coordinator and may elect a parliamentarian, sergeant at arms. The leadership of OPERA shall as soon as possible establish a Constitution and By Laws or adopt Robert's Rules of Order and/or Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure as an organizational plan governing the group. |
| GROUND RULES |
| Those who join the Opposition Parties Election Reform Alliance accept the fact that they disagree on many issues, however, each feels it is in the best interests for all Missourians to work together on those areas of election reform upon which agreements can be reached. OPERA affiliates agree to treat each other with utmost respect, open communications, noting each affiliate is equally important to the alliance.
OPERA affiliates agree that when there are disagreements between two or more affiliates or representatives that cannot be resolved by the parties involved without further discord the alliance shall meet in special session on MSN instant messenger within 72 hours of the problem having surfaced, to attempt to peacefully resolve the problem. By a majority vote of alliance affiliates OPERA may ask the party or campaign involved to provide a different representative if the same person has been involved in incidents requiring special sessions more than twice previously. OPERA affiliates agree to keep the alliance in the news and before the public as much as possible, noting media releases shall only issue with the approval of the parties referred to in the release. OPERA affiliates accept that this is an ELECTION REFORM COALITION. The primary purpose is to wisely revise Missouri election laws, specifically Chapter 115 and any other purposes are secondary thereto. |
| BASIC PRIORITIES FOR FREE AND FAIR ELECTIONS |
| 1. Missouri election laws and code of state regulations regarding elections must be revised. These must all be consistent with each other and with actual practice by election authorities. 2. In all Missouri laws "bipartisan" or "major party" needs replaced with "multi party" or "all political parties on the ballot". 3. Punchcard voting must be made illegal in Missouri. 4. Missouri needs to have a multi party election commission to insure all votes are counted, which bonds and secures all source code for vote tabulation systems and eventually for a statewide secure tabulation system. All vote tabulation systems should pass both federal and stricter state standards tests. 5. Ballots should be counted in the polling place and again at a central location and in full public view. 6. No one should be permitted to have access to an official ballot who is not a registered voter in that jurisdiction. 7. Open primaries should be the norm in Missouri or preferably replaced by a caucus system. 8. Ballot access for new parties and independent candidates should be simplified and retention of ballot access clarified and changed. 9. Sample ballots and instructions should match exactly those actually used at the polls. And braille and large print ballots and instructions should be easily available. 10. All ballots and instructions for statewide elections should be uniform and issued through the multi party election commission. 11. Election authorities should be required to provide directional signs for all polling places and insure all polling places have ample parking. And all polling places should be handicap accessible. 12. Absentee voting, including the Saturday before election day, should be encouraged and no reason for voting absentee required. 13. Those declared mentally incompetent or who are unable to read or write the English language should not be permitted to register to vote. 14. Voter registration drives by any group or individual should be encouraged. 11. Curtains should be returned to Missouri voting booths. 15. Any entity, including media, accepting donations or public funding should be required to allow equal access to all candidates on the ballot. 16. Missouri needs a statewide hard copy voters guide and on line Missouri Citizenship Centers voters guide. 17. Campaigns should be funded only by the candidate or donations from registered voters of the district or entities based in the district. 18. Election judges and tabulation workers should be paid more and given incentive bonuses for reporting election irregularities. 19. Jails should be required to permit voter registration absentee voting by those eligible to vote and those convicted of crimes should be told when they again become eligible to vote. 20. Violations of election laws should be felonies and should be enforced. 21. Where there is on campus housing, election authorities should be required to provide at least one polling place on every college and university campus in Missouri. Missouri should become a leader in election reform. That leadership begins with YOU. If you want to be sure each vote is counted please help insist the Mo. General Assembly make the proper legislative changes. List drafted by Marvalene Pankey, who is State Chairperson of The Reform Party of Missouri. She is also state director for Common-Sense. She has researched vote fraud and election laws since 1994 and has been a candidate for Mo. Secretary of State twice. Opinions expressed may not necessarily reflect any official position of The Reform Party of Missouri or Common-Sense. She may be reached via e mail or fax 810-314-0929 or phone 417-876-4626. http://www.geocities.com/mpankey2001/er101.html |
| HOW TO CHIP AWAY AT THE CANCER THAT IS ON OUR BALLOT BOX---IDENTIFYING SOME PROBLEMS AND OFFERING SOME SOLUTIONS. |
| Ideas by Marvalene Pankey, candidate for secretary of state 1996, 2000 and vote fraud research 1994 to present. State Chair, RPMO Draft---4/19/2001 VOTER REGISTRATION Missouri voter registration may actually be better than most states, however, problems continue to exist. Speaking from personal experience and additional research, I know this includes dead persons remaining on the rolls (my own mother was sent a voter registration card 3 years after her death); those moving continuing to appear as registered in more than one place, (I was sent voter registration cards from two separate counties in 1998); identification not always being required (this is commonplace where the poll workers think they know everyone); some felons continuing to vote; and some of those properly registered being denied a ballot for various reasons. One guy declared candidacy for Mo. House in 2000 although he was a convicted felon on probation. He had been voting regularly while on probation. In 1996, then U.S. Senator Ashcroft alleged there were more people registered to vote in certain counties of Missouri than there were people of voting age. There were also reports in the 1996 Missouri primary that block voting by illegal aliens,who had been registered in Jackson County. St. Louis has had all sorts of allegations and reports regarding voter registrations 2000. Missouri needs a total cleansing of the voter registration rolls. Although the laws we already have should in the least be keeping the deceased, those who move, and felons off the lists, far too many of those not eligible to vote remain registered and obviously some of them vote or someone votes in that name. And on the flipside is the fact the City of St. Louis wiped out numerous persons from the voter registration rolls in 2000. The Missouri Secretary of State needs to insist all the laws and CSRs be followed, including the monthly check of those deceased (which would be better done weekly or daily), check of list of those convicted of felonies (there needs to be better reporting system for state felonies especially), and a check of all utility moves and name changes needs to be added to the law and required done weekly or daily by the election authorities. We do not need out of state or foreign companies tampering with our voter registration roles. We can help educate the public on these issues, including encouraging felons who have served their time to register and vote and letting people know when convicted felons are ineligible to vote. MOTOR VOTER AND MAIL IN REGISTRATION A lot has been said by numerous people of the pros and cons of motor voter, mail in voting registration. The worst problem I have seen with motor voter and/or mail in voter registration is some people not being allowed to vote although they sent in their form and thought they had registered. In 1998 and 2000 I believe some election authorities actually held back allowing some qualified voters to finish their registration process as a means of improperly influencing votes. Another problem is some election authorities appear to be modifying the voter registration forms. The public needs to be better educated as to the motor voter, mail in registration process and assisted with understanding they do need to complete the registration process by a personal appearance and take an oath. Election authorities need to be required to submit a list of the names and identification of all those registering through motor voter or other mail in, to the secretary of state's office monthly and up to the ending of the time permitted for registration. Perhaps a list of new registrants could be published as a reminder for people to check with the election authority if their name does not appear after they think they have registered. The public needs to be made aware if they are turned away from the polls they can call an 800# immediately and should also have some recourse specified by law if denied the opportunity to vote, when qualified and properly registered. CASTING BALLOTS I believe one key reason people do not vote is because the process is too complicated. Problems include confusion over where polling places are. Candidates and voters alike should not have to jump through a series of frustrating hoops to find out where a voter is to vote. Election authorities should forfeit office, be fined heavily, and serve jail time for changing polling places and not giving proper notice to all voters involved. Another actual problem with the process is the voting booth is no longer secret in most precincts. In 1996 and 2000 I actually observed television cameras filming over shoulders of actual voters. I have often walked in and watched people actually marking ballots, especially those voting absentee around courthouses. A major problem during Missouri primaries has been all the parties being stuck in one ballot label (booklet). Even some well educated voters have gotten confused and punched for candidates on more than one party. Missouri law requires separate and distinct ballots for the parties for the primary and that law needs enforced, and the public told in advance that they will have a ballot only for the party of their choice. Political party ballots (even if presented in booklet form) should be separate. The colors of the paper used for each party should also be very distinct from each other and both sides of the ballot card should be colored. In 1998 some election authorities had some of the minor parties on very similarly colored paper and some of the ballot cards were also white on the back versus solid colored paper as used for the major parties. Neither the election authorities nor election materials vendors should be permitted to overly influence, perhaps even psychologically influence voters, through manipulation of the paper. State v. The Board of Election Commissioners of St. Louis County, 686 SW2d 888 (Mo. App. 1985) clearly requires separate ballots for each party in the primary and even separate polling booths with the name of the party displayed. THE LAW AND CSR ON THIS HAS NOT CHANGED. Roy Blunt simply did not enforce it and the election authorities appear to have been told they could ignore it. The next secretaries of state didn't pay any attention to what the law said. Ballots do not match what the law states. 115.231, 115.237, 115.239, 115.245 are supposed to dictate how a ballot looks. COMPARE REALITY WITH THE STATUTES. We need to insist these statutes be enforced or changed. Handicapped voting---Most Mo. election authorities are in violation of 42 USC Sec. 1973 ee-3 which requires each polling place to have large print instructions and telecommunications devices with the instructions for voting. The process needs simplified, made more user friendly, more private, and the public needs more education on how to properly cast a ballot. Uniform ballots should be issued by the Secretary of State's Office for all statewide offices and issues. Sample ballots should be actually like what is at the polls, except marked as a sample and perhaps a different paper. Sample ballots should be available in every public library, schools, community centers weeks before the election. The secretary of state needs to require each election authority to submit sample ballots well in advance of the election. We need to also insist that Mo. provide ballots and easily accessible polling places for handicapped voters. VOTE TABULATION=COUNTING THE VOTES Before the 2002 election cycle, the secretary of state's office and the Mo. General Assembly needs to assure the people that the elections systems used by Mo. election authorities, at least meet the minimal voluntary standards set forth by the Federal Elections Commission. If necessary, the Missouri legislature needs to appropriate emergency funds for National Association of State Elections Directors (NASED) qualified systems and equipment to be provided to the communities. As an alternative, smaller communities, with systems, such as ETNET, that are most likely unable to comply with the standards, should be encouraged to vote by paper ballot and hand counting in the precincts. The 1988 NIST( National Institute of Standards and Technology) report recommended the elimination of pre-scored ballot cards because of inaccurate vote counts, incorrect punching, chad that falls off or fails to fall and gets back in a hole (even from ballots sold as chad free), etc. In spite of the recommendation the use of pre scored cards actually increased. AND NOW THE WHOLE WORLD KNOWS WHAT CHADS DO AS A RESULT OF VOTESCAM 2000. We must insist on a secure vote tabulation system for Missouri. Every effort should be made by the Mo. General Assembly and insisted upon by the Mo. Governor that a secure vote tabulation system bonded and secured through a commission appointed by the governor and including representatives of all the political parties on the ballot for the election 2002. For election cycle 2002, no one should be voting on punch card ballots or unsecured optical scan ballots or any other system where the source code is not fully bonded and secured by an independent body. There is NO POINT IN VOTING IF EACH BALLOT IS NOT GOING TO BE PROPERLY COUNTED. OPERA IS GROWING TO MAKE SURE WE DO HAVE A SECURE VOTE TABULATION SYSTEM AND VOTE FRAUD IS PREVENTED OTHERWISE. |
| El Dorado Springs | Mo | 64744 |
 decisivevoters@yahoo.com |
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